“Ooooof!” Yelled Polyphemus as burning timbers penetrate the gooey surface of his iris. Odysseus jumped off the giant creature’s back and landed smoothly on his feet. Blinded by the fiery hot stake, Polyphemus clutched his eye and hit the ground with an audible thump. Groaning and twisting about, the beast knocks down huge boulders that served as tables and the cacophony of sounds frightened the goats that he carefully tends to. However, quickly after his twitching and spasms, he fell into a state of unconsciousness. What led Polyphemus to this treacherous fate? And why did Homer choose to include the famous Cyclops in this tragedy?
The use of Polyphemus is ingenious in the “Odyssey”, because Polyphemus’s lack of intelligence easily contrasts with Odysseus’s quick and rational thinking. Homer builds Polyphemus as means of making Odysseus more multi-dimensional and better liked for his wits and cleverness. The cannibalistic giant was easily fooled when he asked for Odysseus’s name before he threatened to dismember the mighty war hero. When asked about his name, Odysseus replied by saying, “Nobody –that’s my name. Nobody –so my mother and father call me, all my friends,” (9.410). The simple-minded antagonist did not even doubt the legitimacy of that fake name for a second, that even when he shouts for help as Odysseus blinds him, he screams, “Nobody’s killing me now by fraud and not by force!” (9.455). This gullible behavior allows the readers to train the spotlight on Odysseus in terms of intelligence.
However, what Polyphemus lacks in brains, he makes up in brawn. For example, he evidently shows his physical strength as he, “snatched two at once, rapping them on the ground, he knocked them dead like pups –their brains gushed out...
... middle of paper ...
... Revealing his name to Polyphemus is an incredibly unintelligent action that can only be explained by his arrogant nature. However, his bold decision is punished when Polyphemus cursed him and prayed for Odysseus to never reach Ithaca and that if he does by chance return home, that he returns to a world of pain.
Although Polyphemus is not dead like Odysseus hoped for, he surely deserved what misfortune has befallen him. As I am sure that the Greeks detest Polyphemus with a burning passion, but as readers, we must thank Polyphemus for shedding more light on the character of Odysseus. Without Polyphemus, we would not have had as much insight into Odysseus’s intelligence as we do now. In Polyphemus’s encounter, we have arguably learned more about Odysseus than in any other part of the story, therefore, making Polyphemus the best supporting character in the “Odyssey”.
This shows that Odysseus’ self-serving nature extends beyond material greed into the equally sinful realm of pride. In a classic display of hubris, Odysseus taunts the Cyclopes fulfilling the sole purpose of stroking Odysseus’s ego. At first it appears that our hero is lacking foresight, but Odysseus tells Polyphemus his name in hopes that tales of his cunning will spread throughout Greece: a very selfish goal, directly resulting in the endangerment of the lives of both him and his men throughout the remainder of their travels.
In Homer’s epic poem, The Odyssey, Odysseus fails as a leader by prioritizing his reputation over his crew’s safety after defeating the cyclops Polyphemus. In the story, Odysseus, the king of Ithaca, travels to Troy to fight against the Trojans. On his journey back to Ithaca, a string of damaging incidents lead him to a mysterious island, which he later discovers is inhabited by the murderous cyclops Polyphemus. His crew manages to escape the cyclops, but not before Polyphemus kills several of Odysseus’s crew. Odysseus escapes and could have sailed away peacefully, but he calls out to Polyphemus to suggest that “if anyone, any mortal man, asks you how you got your eye put out, tell him that Odysseus the marauder did it,” (IX, 500-502). This prompts Polyphemus to lob a rock, nearly destroying Odysseus's ship. It is odd that this was
Throughout Odysseus’s meandering and consequent homecoming in Ithaca, Homer depicts many different aspects of Odysseus’s personality in his epic poem “The Odyssey”. Although Odysseus is smart, brave, and is a great fighter, in reality, he is an overconfident madman. Throughout Homer’s classic epic, Odysseus uses his skill to overcome many obstacles. However, in each story, overconfidence is always a major theme, and Odysseus’s hubris always causes him to do crazy things. At the end, Odysseus’s arrogance is his fatal flaw, and leads him into trouble.
Odysseus’ attempt to make himself feel at home in Polyphemos’ cave turns out to be disastrous. Homer emphasizes from this situation Odysseus’ lack of caution and judgment as Odysseus’ crew had already advised him to leave the cave. In consuming Polyphemos’ livestock and cheese, Odysseus demonstrates a high level of comfort with Polyphemos which is in reality not evident for the two individuals who meet for the first time. As a result, Odysseus and his crew portray themselves as intruders rather than visitors.
Like Jacob, Odysseus connived, manipulated, and deceived. On his journey home from the Trojan War, Odysseus uses his trickster ways to get himself out of trouble. One famous tail was his encounter with the one-eyed Cyclopes Polyphemous. Odysseus and his crew landed on the land of they Cyclopes. They made themselves at home, eating the cheese and goats of the Cyclopes, fully expecting him to be hospitable. Instead, Cyclops began eating then men as though they were animals themselves. Odysseus and his men were trapped in the cave and Polyphemous rolled a stone over the entrance so no one could exit. Odysseus connived a plan and gave the Cyclopes some wine. When he got drunk and passed out, Odysseus poked out the eye of Polyphemous and completely blinds him. Odysseus and his men escape the cave by clinging to the bellies of sheep (Odyssey, Ch. 9). He also disguised himself as a veteran of a Trojan war to Eumaios, a loyal servant, and as a beggar to his wife and son.
Then the hero arrives at the home of Polyphemos. Polyphemos is a huge cyclops and also a cannibal. Odysseus and twelve of his men are trapped inside Polyphemos’ cave and can’t get out. Polyphemos comes back and eats some of the hero’s men. The next night Odysseus gets the cyclops drunk on wine, and when it falls asleep, Odysseus and his remaining men blind it with a large pole. He and his men barely escape with their lives and continue on the voyage.
The difference between a wise and a foolish decision is often found in discerning when to conceal and when to reveal. This discretion in concealing and revealing is a major theme within The Odyssey. There is a proper time to deceive and a proper time to tell the truth; thus, it is crucial that one act accordingly. This importance is exemplified in Odysseus' life. When he is discreet in his timing, he achieves his goal. One example of this is the Trojan War. While the other men in the horse want to expose themselves when they hear their wives' voices being mimicked by Helen, Odysseus forces them to stay hidden within the horse (Book IV, lines 306-311). Because of this discernment and self-control, the Trojan War is won. However, when he is careless in his timing, troubles follow. In the situation with Polyphemus, Odysseus makes an improper decision. He gives his name to Polyphemus as he is leaving the island of the Cyclopes. Although his crew urges him to stop taunting Polyphemus, he does not listen because of his pride in his skill of deception (Book IX, lines 519-552). As a result of this foolishness and pride, his return home is full of hardships and his companions die. Timing of concealment and revelation has such significant consequences because disguise is a powerful tool that needs to be handled carefully. From Books XIII to XXII, Odysseus uses it against the people of Ithaca to plan his revenge. In Book XIX, Homer employs the story of the scar and uses various literary techniques to highlight again on the power of disguise and importance of Odysseus' maintaining his disguise until the opportune time.
Some of these instances occur even before he begins his journey from Troy to Ithaca. For example, while fighting in Troy, Odysseus disguises himself as a beggar to enter Troy and also devised the plan of the Trojan horse, which allowed the Achaeans to win the war. These instances not only reveal Odysseus’ cleverness, but also his braveness. During his journey home to Ithaca, Odysseus’ intelligence and cunning is evident when he initially does not tell Polyphemus his real name, but calls himself “Noman”, so that none of the other cyclops will help Polyphemus when he cries out. He also devises the plan of getting Polyphemus drunk, blinding him, and then escaping by holding on to the sheep. After learning his lesson from revealing his true identity to Polyphemus, Odysseus justifies his cleverness by disguising his identity when he returns to Ithaca, so that he can devise a plan to slaughter the suitors without risking his
The first bad decision that Odysseus made was poking Polyphemus’ eye out. Even though it was necessary to escape, poking the sea god’s son’s eye out is never a good idea. To make matters worse, Odysseus bragged about his accomplishment later to the cyclops. The only reason why it took Odysseus ten extra years to get home was because Poseidon was angry at him for severely injuring his son. Also, if Odysseus would not have revealed his name to the cyclops, Polyphemus would never have known who poked his eye out. In return, Polyphemus would never had told his father, Poseidon, that Odysseus injured him and that he should give him a hard time on his journey home. So, if Odysse...
The first heroic characteristic of Odysseus is his cleverness. In The Odyssey, one of the instances where Odysseus displays cleverness is in his encounter with the Cyclops, Polyphemus. Polyphemus captures Odysseus and his men in the island Cyclopes, which was filled with other giants. Although it is expected among the Greeks to display hospitality to strangers, Polyphemus ends up eating some of Odysseus men. In order to escape the giant, Odysseus comes up with a clever plan. He offers Polyphemus wine in order to get the giant drunk. When the giant falls asleep, Odysseus stabs Polyphemus’ singular eye, blinding the giant. The giant naturally wakes up, and starts to try and recapture Odysseus and his men. Knowing that the giant’s shouting would most likely attract the attention of the other giants in the island, Odysseus replies to Polyphemus when the giant asks him his name that his name was “Noman.” But when Polyphemus shouts for help, none of the other giants come to his aid, since he is shouting “My friends, N...
To start, within the course of The Odyssey, Odysseus displays hubris through many of his actions. The most prominent instance in which Odysseus shows hubris is while he and his men are trying to escape from the Cyclops Polyphemus. They drug the monster until it passes out, and then stab him with a timber in his single eye. Polyphemus, now blinded, removes the gigantic boulder blocking Odysseus’ escape, and waits for the men to move, so he can kill them. The men escape from the cave to their boat by tying themselves under flocks of rams, so they can easily slip by. Odysseus, now proud after beating the giant, starts to yell at Polyphemus, instead of making a silent escape. Odysseus’ men ask him to stop before Polyphemus would “get the range and lob a boulder” (436). But Odysseus shows hubris by saying that if they were to meet again, Odysseus would “take your life” and “hurl you down to hell!” (462; 463). Polyphemus, now extremely angry with Odysseus, prays to his father, Poseidon, to make Odysseus “never see his home” again, and after which, throws a mountain towards the sound of Odysseus’ voice. (470). Because of Odysseus’ hubris after blinding Polyphemus, Poseidon grants the prayer, and it takes Odysseus 20 years to return home, at the cost of the lives of all his men.
Homer’s The Odyssey, a magnificent story of lust, deceit, greed, and heroism, still fascinates scholars and casual readers alike today in the same way it fascinated its audience at the time it was written. The Odyssey, a journey of determination, patience, and virtue, tells the tail of Odysseus, the main character, on his voyage home to Ithaka after the end of the Trojan War. Odysseus goes through many unforeseen trials and tribulations, which exemplify his character. During these different happenings, Odysseus makes decisions that do not correspond to his character.
Once he and he men are sailing away from the Cyclops, Odysseus cries back to the Cyclops “if anyone ever asks you how you came by your blindness, tell them your eye was put out by Odysseus, sacker of cities, son of Laertes, who lives in Ithaca.” Odysseus has regretted his earlier decision for Polyphemus to not know his true name, because it means that anyone hearing the tale of a man defeating a Cyclops will not know that it was Odysseus who did it. The arrogant Odysseus does not like this, because he wants all tales of his prowess to be known for his. As he cannot let the chance of more fame escape him, he reveals to Polyphemus his true identity. This sentence, with which he risks the Cyclops throwing a boulder onto their ship, show the readers just how arrogant Odysseus is. It helps the readers understand quite how willing Odysseus is to risk anything if it will add to his
After escaping Polyphemos’s cave, Odysseus’s crew remains loyal. As a result, the focus changes to Odysseus being the epic hero. Odysseus takes control of the situation and allows most of his crew to escape safely. The crew is helpless and directs the attention to how Odysseus rescues his crew by blinding Polyphemos with a spear. He has escapes by having his men hang on the underside of rams. Odysseus laughs and keeps calm during the entire tense situation. “They lumbered off, but laughter filled my heart…” (9.461). Odysseus’s ability to keep his cool is what separates him from an ordinary man. Odysseus rises up when his crew is in predicaments. His lea...
To begin, one feature that makes Odysseus and epic hero is his intelligence. In order for him to have survived through his journey, he has to have a massive amount of intellect. To have survived a Cyclops is an accomplishment of its own. His ability to think on his feet and to plan situations and ability to make a right decision in horrid environments has helped him survive throughout his disastrous journey. When he is trapped by the Cyclops, Polyphemus, he has to carve, smooth, and sharpen a gigantic spear-shaped-pole out of a large tree that he and his strongest men would then use it on the Cyclops to blind it. In order to follow through with his plan, Odysseus has to sedate him. He gives Polyphemus an extremely strong wine, in which Polyphemus asks him his name. Odysseus replies: “My name is Nohbdy; mother, father, friends, everyone call me Nohbdy”(9.274-9.275) When the Cyclops passes out, Odysseus and four of his strongest men stab Polyphemus in his eye with the sharpened pole that he and his men ...